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Greens senator doubles down on lowering super tax threshold
Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young has said the party will be advocating for “a fairer share” when asked about its proposal to lower the super tax threshold from $3 million to $2 million.
Speaking on Sky News today (24 April), Hanson-Young said the Greens have “been back and forth” with the government over this piece of legislation.
“In the new parliament, of course, we will be pushing for making sure that there is a fairer share of these things,” she said. "In a minority government we will negotiate with Labor to make things better, to make them deliver on their promises and to keep them honest."
When asked about the taxing of unrealised gains, Hanson-Young added: "You need to look at this through the lens of what's fair across the board".
"People who have ... millions and millions of dollars in superannuation being able to have special tax settings versus ... the rest of the population who are struggling and worried about what their super balance is going to look like at retirement, is there even going to be enough in there," she said.
“My focus is everyday hardworking Australians wondering if there will actually be enough money in the bank, and that’s the bulk of workers. The people who are retiring on $2 million or $3 million is small.”
Interestingly, asked about his thoughts on what Hanson-Young had to say, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said he would not bend to pressure.
On the other side of the aisle, Kevin Hogan, shadow minister for trade, said taxing unrealised gains is an “extremely dangerous policy”.
“Taxing unrealised gains will actually make superannuation in this country an unsafe investment for a lot of Australians,” he said. “This is taxing the mums and dads of Australia who are trying to save for their retirement.”
Analysis from an industry group, which asked to remain anonymous, revealed this week that if the Division 296 tax is lowered to $2 million, it would impact more than 1.8 million Australians.
The Australian reported that the analysis, based on modelling using ASIC’s Moneysmart calculator and data from the ATO, revealed 47,860 people aged between 55 and 59 will pay 30 per cent total tax on their super earnings and unrealised capital gains if the threshold is lowered.
Peter Burgess, chief executive of the SMSF Association, said although he had not seen the analysis he had “no reason to dispute the figures”.
“If the threshold is reduced, many more people will be impacted,” he said.
“I’m not surprised the Greens would propose this reduction, and if the polls are right, we are heading towards a minority Labor government and the Greens’ position on this tax is very relevant,” Burgess said.
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